The Inebriated Incident
by shimmeryshine
Summary: What happens when Luke and Lorelai get a little bit tipsy at a party at Babette's house? Will they finally admit their feelings, or will it all be too much for Lorelai to take?
1. The Incident

**Disclaimer: **I unfortunately own nothing to do with Gilmore Girls (except my DVDs)

**A/N: **This story takes place during no particular time frame; just know that Luke and Lorelai are not together (yet…). As always, reviews are greatly appreciated. I hope you enjoy!

**Chapter 1: The Incident**

The diner was peaceful that morning as she shuffled her way through the door, the bell jingling loudly above her. It was only 5:30, and Kirk was sitting by himself at his usual table by the window sipping a hot drink. He looked up quickly when Lorelai entered; he wasn't used to other people coming into the diner before six.

"You're up early Lorelai."

She only grunted in response. Her bleary eyes scanned the room for any signs of the diner's proprietor, but the only thing she saw was a slowly filling coffee pitcher behind the counter. "Luke!" she hollered hoarsely. A few seconds passed without any sound and Lorelai plopped herself down on a stool at the counter. "Luke, I need coffee!" Still no answer. "Kirk, how'd you get coffee so early?"

"Oh," Kirk held up his mug, "this isn't coffee."

Lorelai was so not in the mood for Kirk when the sun wasn't even up yet, but she played along. "What is it then?"

"It's hot chocolate. My mom says coffee's bad for you; it stunts your growth and makes you sterile."

Lorelai snorted, and would have laughed if not for the extremely serious tone Kirk had used. Thankfully Luke walked down the stairs and into the diner at that moment, deflecting Lorelai's attention away from Kirk's issues. His face brightened for an instant, and then went neutral again as he noticed who was sitting at the counter. "You're up early."

"Is that all anybody can say to me anymore?" Lorelai pouted.

"Good morning sunshine!" Luke said in a painfully cheery voice as he grabbed an extra large coffee mug and set it down in front of Lorelai, pouring her a full cup. "That better?"

"Oh yes, much." She took a deep drink from her coffee, and kept her eyes trained on a spot on the back wall. Luke's eyes turned away from her as well as he concentrated on scrubbing a spot on the counter that could not possibly be dirty, as it had not been occupied since the diner had opened that morning. After several awkward minutes passed, Lorelai started digging around in her purse, finally finding a few crumpled bills. She laid them down beside her now empty cup, tapping her fingers lightly on the countertop to get Luke's attention. "Well, I better get going. Got an inn to run and everything."

Luke just nodded and picked the money up off the counter, bringing it over to the cash register without looking up. After Lorelai turned around and stepped outside, Luke's gaze returned to watch her, and his eyes followed her all the way across the street until he saw her stop and turn abruptly around to look back at him. She stood there for a moment with her hands on her hips, and then she started waving for him to come outside. He shook his head and pointed at Kirk, motioning that he had a diner to run and wasn't going to go running down the street just to see what she wanted.

Lorelai's hands returned to her hips and she slumped slightly, sighing, looking torn as to what she should do next. He watched her, holding his breath quietly, feeling as though something significant were about to happen, and that's when she started jogging back to the diner. This act alone stunned Luke slightly, as he had noticed earlier that she was wearing unbelievably high heels (_ones that had made her legs look particularly amazing_ he had thought), and Lorelai wasn't one to mess up her fancy shoes by running to come see him of all people. But she was quickly approaching the diner door, and when she entered, her mind seemed to be far from the potential damage to her footwear.

"Luke we need to talk." She was staring him right in the eyes now, not wanting to pretend anymore.

"About what?" He stared right back. _Was she really doing this?_

"About last night." Kirk's head popped up at this small admission, and Luke shot him a 'don't go there' glance.

"Caesar!" Luke yelled toward the kitchen. Caesar's head popped through the doorway, "I'm going upstairs for a while, can you handle the diner for me?"

"Sure, you go on. I've got it covered."

"Thanks." Luke turned back to Lorelai and gestured to the stairs. "After you."

They both entered Luke's small apartment quickly, and then stood just staring at each other for a few minutes. Once the silence became unbearable, Lorelai spoke, "So about last night…"

Sunday Night

Babette's House

It was only 10 o'clock, but every person at Babette's anniversary party was completely trashed, Lorelai included. The fruit punch had consisted of about one cup of actual fruit juice for every ten cups of vodka, or at least it seemed that way to her. Morey, Babette, and Miss Patty were all sitting around the piano singing loudly and very off key, but they were all having a blast, and Lorelai was standing by the window with her flushed skin pressed against the cool glass rocking back and forth to the beat. She could feel a pair of eyes watching her from the other side of the room, and she let herself find those eyes after pretending that she hadn't noticed he'd been watching her all night.

Luke had only come to the party because she'd asked him to bring over some food and then wouldn't let him leave. He had a few glasses of punch and then she didn't have to do anymore convincing, he didn't even try to get away. They had spoken a few times since he'd joined in the festivities, but she kept getting dragged away by some crazy town member who wanted to dance, or by Miss Patty who wanted to gossip about the men at the party. But the more Lorelai had to drink, the more her thoughts kept returning to the flannel clad man who had been standing in the same corner for at least a half hour doing nothing but watch her every move. And now, she held her breath as he started making his way through the crowd over to where she was standing. He didn't stop walking until he was right next to her, standing so close that she could see each tiny bloodshot vessel in his eyes and feel the heat coming off him in waves. There had only been a small number of times Lorelai could recall that they had been this close to each other, and even in her drunken state she knew why neither of them allowed themselves to. It was much too tempting, and getting harder and harder to resist.

Luke reached out and grabbed her hand then, as she realized that Morey was playing a much slower song and couples had started swaying in the middle of the living room. She let Luke lead her to the middle of the floor, and if it was possible, her head got even cloudier the second Luke's hand snaked around her waist to pull her flush against his chest.

Lorelai sighed and let her head rest lightly on Luke's shoulder as they swayed to the music, and she felt him kiss the top of her head, and slip a hand under the back of her shirt. Her eyes opened slightly as the reality of what Luke was doing slowly made its way around her tipsy brain, and she knew she should stop him. _But why?_ She thought. The circular pattern Luke's fingers were tracing along her lower back was driving her mad, but only in the way that she wanted more. It felt better than she had ever imagined having Luke holding her close like this, and she didn't see why she should deny herself, or Luke this moment. So she continued swaying, completely unaware that all eyes in the room were on them.

As the song stopped, and silence fell around them, Lorelai finally let her eyes open only to be met with stares and smirks from almost everyone in the town. She glanced up at Luke, who also seemed to have noticed their rather intimate position in the middle of the living room, and they both stepped apart, reality crashing down around them. _What the hell was I doing?_ Lorelai thought, glancing around for a quick out, she spotted a space between guests over by the kitchen, and with one apologetic glance in Luke's direction, she bolted, not stopping until she reached the porch of her own house. She plopped down, heaving in the swing and rested her head in her hands wishing that she hadn't had so much to drink. A thousand thoughts were swimming around her head, _What have I done? How could I have done that to him? God his hands felt good on me…_Lorelai stopped. _Where did that come from?_ No matter how much she tried to deny it, Lorelai knew that deep down she had been attracted to Luke for a while, and it had been inevitable for their feelings to get out eventually. She just hadn't been prepared for it to happen so soon, and truthfully she hadn't really even admitted to herself that there were any feelings there at all. But now, after that little show everyone in the town saw first hand just how much they were attracted to each other, and she had left Luke in there all alone to fend for himself. A pang of guilt shot through her, but it turned into worry as she saw Luke come out of Babette's house, headed straight for her. _Oh God, oh God_. Lorelai opened her mouth to speak, to do anything to take away from the seriousness written all over Luke's face, but was stopped by his finger on her lips. So natural for such an intimate gesture.

"Don't say anything, let me get this out." Luke took his hand away and shoved it in his pocket, and started pacing in front of her. "Lorelai I…" he stopped, searching for the right words. She held her breath. "Do you know…" he started again, but clamped his mouth shut in frustration. This was not going how he planned. He stopped pacing and stood right in front of her, staring her down, daring her to run away. He saw the fear in her eyes, but there was something else there as well. Something he had never seen before, but seemed oddly familiar. He took a step toward her then, he could formulate no words for how he felt about her, so he was just going to have to show her once and for all.

He let his hands go to her face, rubbing her cheeks softly with his thumbs, then letting one finger trace her bottom lip lightly. Lorelai gulped, and Luke slowly pulled her to him letting their lips finally touch after all those years of wanting and waiting. He was only slightly surprised when she threaded a hand through his hair, bringing his mouth closer to hers, and pushing her body against his as close as she could get it. He heard her groan as she opened her mouth to him, and their kiss became deeper, and Luke had to physically force himself to pull away. He kept a hand outstretched touching her shoulder, keeping her from coming close to him.

They both stood staring, breathing heavily for a few moments, amazed at how great that kiss had been and how much they both wanted to do it again and again. Luke removed his hand from her and slowly started backing his way down the steps of her porch, and was momentarily surprised at the flicker of disappointment that flashed across Lorelai's face at his departure. He wanted to stay there with her more than he had ever wanted anything in his life, but he knew he had to give her some time to process her feelings or she was going to freak out on him, and that was the last thing he wanted.

Lorelai watched him walk down her drive way in the direction of the diner until she couldn't see him anymore. Her finger moved back and forth over her kiss-swollen lips, still amazed at Luke's actions and just how much she had enjoyed them. Luke had kissed her. Luke. Luke Danes. Mr. Backwards Baseball Hat. And now all she could think of was how much she wanted to run after him and kiss him back, and tell him exactly what she was feeling. And that's when it hit her, she was feeling these feelings toward Luke, ones that she had never ever felt for another person in her life, and she hadn't even seen it coming. So she turned and headed back inside her house, locking the door automatically behind her, making her way mechanically up to her bedroom. All thoughts were of Luke and nothing but Luke; she had to figure this out now. It was far too important to push to the back of her brain, and it was not like she was going to be getting any kind sleep with her heart pounding like it was. It was all out now, and it was time she dealt with it like she should have done ages ago.


	2. Confessions of Lorelai Gilmore

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own them, no matter how much I want to.

**A/N: **Thanks to all who reviewed! You guys are great. This story is going to be more than just these two chapters, so this is not the end! Hope you enjoy, and please continue telling me what you think!

**Chapter 2: Confessions of Lorelai Gilmore**

Monday Morning

5:00am

Lorelai stood pacing in her bedroom, back and forth, back and forth. She had given up on sleep when she had woken from a particularly graphic dream, staring a certain diner man, at 4:30 and had been pacing her way around the room ever since. Her hands were flying around in front of her face as she mentally went through everything that had happened the night before. _Luke kissed me. I kissed him back. Everyone at Babette's party saw us dancing. Luke kissed me and I liked it. Oh God, oh God. _Flinging herself back onto the bed, Lorelai sighed deeply. _What am I going to do now?_

Twenty minutes later Lorelai was again pacing, but this time downstairs by the front door. She was hungry and hung over and desperately needed some coffee. If going to Luke's was going to get something started, well then she was just going to have to deal with it. So she finally grabbed her purse and walked out the door, headed for the diner. About halfway down her driveway she stopped dead in her tracks. What if Luke pretended like nothing happened? Or what if he confronted her? Gah, she was so confused. Shaking her head side to side, Lorelai started walking down the street again. _If he confronts me, I'll just have to tell him the truth._ Now her only problem was figuring out what exactly the truth about her feelings was. She knew she liked him as more than just a friend. The night before had proven that to her beyond a shadow of a doubt, but she really wasn't the kind of person to just come out and say exactly what she was feeling. It was practically her trademark to avoid any kind of serious conversation, especially one as touchy as her relationship with Luke.

Lorelai stopped when she turned the corner and saw the lights glowing brightly in the diner. She abruptly turned around and started walking back toward her house. She couldn't do this, not now not ever. What if it didn't work out? What if he hated her once he got to know her in that way? What if last night had all been some kind of alcohol induced dream? Lorelai stopped again, and turned back toward the diner. If she just pretended that nothing happened, and let Luke do what he wants, then there would be no pressure on her, right? _Right._

So new confidence in tow, Lorelai walked through the door of the diner.

-----

Luke's Apartment

Present (5:45am)

"Yeah about last night. Look…" Luke started.

Lorelai held up a hand to stop him. She was going to be the one to do this, and she had to do it right, no matter how scary it seemed. She couldn't lie to herself anymore, and she didn't want to. Seeing Luke come down the stairs just before had made her realize that she couldn't go back to the way things were. There was just too much potential there to waste, and she was finally ready to see where this would go if she just let herself be open to it. "Luke, I don't want to forget last night ever happened."

Luke's eyes went wide for a second, but he kept quiet, letting her speak what was on her mind.

She started pacing again, "You kissed me, and I kissed you." She looked up at Luke, who was just standing with his arms crossed watching her. "We kissed Luke." She motioned between them with her hands.

"Yes, I remember."

"And you know, it didn't suck."

"Well, that's good to know." What was she getting at here?

"What if I said that I didn't want it to be the last time it happened?" Lorelai was holding her breath now, and standing very, very still.

"Then I would say that you don't have anything to worry about."

Lorelai exhaled slightly, and took a step toward Luke. "Good to know." She stepped in closer and let her eyes lift until she was staring into Luke's endless blue orbs. Her hands reached up to cup his face, echoing his gesture from the night before, and she pulled his lips to hers. This kiss was a little bit faster, and harder than the one they had shared on her porch. It was Lorelai, after all, who was leading the way that morning. Pulling herself away after a moment, Lorelai stood breathing rather hard, only an inch from Luke's lips. "I have to go," she whispered. "The Inn and Kirk."

"Wait, Kirk?"

Lorelai took a step back from Luke, her words were not coming out very clear when she was standing so close to him. "I have to get to the Inn and Kirk is downstairs."

"Oh right." He had clearly forgotten all about the diner below, and certainly had not been thinking about Kirk. "Yeah, we should both go."

They stood there, not moving a muscle for a few seconds, and then both made a move for the door at the exact same second. Their hands collided midway to the knob, and they both started laughing. Luke pulled his hand away, "After you."

"Thank you sir," Lorelai said smiling. She made her way down the steps with Luke only inches behind her. Every few steps she could feel his arm or his leg come dangerously close to touching her, but they never made any kind of actual contact. By the time they reached the bottom, all Lorelai wanted to do was turn around and head right back up, but the day was calling, and they both had too many obligations. "So," she said to Luke as he headed back behind the counter, "I'll see you later?"

He shot her a smile, "Absolutely."

"Good, good. Bye Luke." Lorelai started backing up toward the door.

"Bye Lorelai." They kept eye contact until the door shut in front her face, and she was forced to turn and walk down the street.

"It's about damn time," came Kirk's voice from the corner of the room. He got up quickly and let himself out, leaving Luke smiling all alone behind the counter. _Today is going to be a good day_ he thought to himself as he resumed cleaning the counter, thinking only of a certain brunette with bright blue eyes.


	3. Guess Who

**Disclaimer: Nope, still not mine.**

**A/N: Thanks for the kind replies, they really make me smile! **

**Chapter 3: Guess Who**

Lorelai was positively giddy as she walked back to her house in the early morning sunshine. Her fingers traced her lips lightly every few seconds, still amazed at the tingly feeling still running through them. The feeling of Luke's lips on hers was etched in her brain, and wouldn't be a memory soon forgotten. Once she caught sight of her house, she skipped over to the jeep parked in her driveway, and opened the door to let herself inside. She turned it on, letting the engine rev a little, and flipped on the radio. Every station was annoyingly playing commercials or morning talk shows, and she turned it off after the elevator music started. Sighing to herself, mad that the radio was ruining her good mood, she decided to move on to other forms of entertaining herself. She grabbed her purse and fished out her cell phone, dialing the familiar number as she backed out onto the main street headed toward the Dragonfly.

Rory picked up on the fourth ring, "Hello?" she said groggily.

"Hey sweets!" Lorelai sang out loudly.

"Mom? Why are you calling me at 6 o'clock in the morning? And why are you so chipper?" Rory pulled her covers around herself tighter, trying to keep her eyes open.

"I just kissed somebody," Lorelai proclaimed in a sing song voice. "Guess who?"

Rory sat up in her bed, a puzzled look on her face. "Who are you kissing at 6 o'clock in the morning?"

"Guess." Lorelai pulled up to a red light, and starting messing with the radio again.

"It's way too early for me to come up with a witty response to that one, so give me a hint." Her brain was zinging with possibilities, but she couldn't think of anyone who could seriously be a candidate.

"Okay, well it was a guy."

"That narrows it down for me."

"He lives in Stars Hollow and has brown hair."

"Oh, you've finally admitted your feelings for Kirk then?"

Lorelai gasped, "Don't even kid about that one. He has a girlfriend you know."

"How could anyone not know he has a girlfriend, he tells everyone he sees!" Rory heard a honking noise coming from her mom's end of the phone. "Are you in the car?"

"Yeah I'm on my way to work."

"At 6 o'clock in the morning?"

"I think we have established that it is now 6 o'clock in the morning Rory. Now keep guessing! You have to keep me occupied because there is nothing on the radio this early in the morning and the CD player is on strike."

"It's just mad because you were playing your Jimmy Buffet again. Oh hey, could your new kissing buddy fix your CD player?"

"Oh yes he definitely could." A mental image of Luke bent over her car, fixing her CD player flashed across her mind, but she pushed it away when Rory spoke again.

"Hmm okay, so the clues are: he's a guy, he lives in Stars Hollow, he has brown hair, and he can fix things."

"Yup, he's so dreamy isn't he?" Lorelai giggled to herself, pulling into the inn. She got out of the car and stumbled when she tried to balance her purse and her folder full of paperwork while keeping her phone pressed to her ear. "Only one cup of Luke's coffee was not enough this morning let me tell ya."

"You've already been to Luke's this morning too? You've been busy…" Rory stopped speaking suddenly, a certain brown haired Stars Hollow resident popping up in her head. "Oh my God mom, you kissed Luke?!"

A wide grin spread across Lorelai's face, despite the pile of papers now strewn around her feet. "I knew there was a reason I sent you to Yale."

"Did this all just happen this morning?"

"Well not exactly. Lets just say that we got a little bit tipsy last night at Babette's party and some things came out into the open."

"Some things?"

"Yes, like how Luke and I feel about each other."

"How exactly do you feel about him mom?"

Lorelai couldn't stop smiling, but this was all still so new. "I'm not sure exactly, but I know that it is a good feeling. A really good feeling."

Rory smiled to herself, really glad that they had both at least admitted that there was something between them. "I just can't believe you guys actually kissed."

"I know, neither can I." Lorelai finally picked up the last of the papers off the ground, and made her way into the deserted Dragonfly. She flopped down onto one of the couches and just let herself relax for a minute. "Okay well I just wanted to tell someone my exciting news, I'll let you get back to sleep."

Rory yawned gratefully, "I'm so happy for you mom, and tell Luke I said hi when you see him."

"I will, sleep tight hon."

"Bye mom." Lorelai flipped her phone shut and settled herself back onto the couch yawning slightly. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this happy. It was about damn time.

-----

One Week Later

Dragonfly Inn, Lunchtime

The bag of food dropped with a plop to the floor and was promptly forgotten as Lorelai attacked Luke with her mouth. He had innocently been bringing her lunch in her office when she had slammed the door behind him and pushed him roughly against the wall, forgetting entirely that he had a bag full of cheeseburgers and brownies in his hand. He didn't seem to mind much though, as he grabbed for Lorelai's waist and pulled her as close as possible without hurting her. Their mouths were kissing and sucking hungrily, and their hands were moving so fast that neither knew who was touching what, only that they needed more. Lorelai tilted her head back to moan, and take in a little bit of air, and Luke took the opportunity to nip is way down her throat, causing her to yelp and thread her fingers through his hair. He didn't stop kissing until he reached fabric, and then he turned them around so their positions against the wall were reversed, and her head was now banging lightly on the hard surface behind her. Luke's mouth returned to Lorelai's and his hands traced the skin of her toned stomach, itching to just rip her shirt off so he could taste more skin, but then he would remember that they were at the inn and someone could walk in on them at any given time since there was no lock on the door. He was going to have to fix that, he thought to himself before she started sliding her knee up his thigh and all coherent thought flew from his head.

As if the fates had heard Luke's thoughts on the lack of a lock on Lorelai's door, the handle started to jiggle, and Sookie popped her head inside. "Hey Lorelai…" she started, cutting herself off after she saw what exactly Lorelai had been doing in her office with the door closed. Luke and Lorelai pushed apart from each other panting heavily, both red in the face. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I didn't know you guys were in here, well I knew Lorelai was in here, but I had no idea that you were in here too Luke, and I swear I'll knock from now on, and…"

"Sookie!" Lorelai cut her off, "It's okay. Just give me a minute and I'll meet you in the kitchen." Lorelai was patting down her shirt, and Luke was looking everywhere but at Sookie.

"Okay, sorry again!" Sookie turned and shut the door, red faced and smiling broadly.

Back in Lorelai's office, Luke stood shuffling his feet, trying to get his breathing back under control. Lorelai finally got her shirt the way it was supposed to be, and leaned down to pick up the to-go bag from the diner. She cleared her throat, "Thanks for bringing me lunch."

He looked up at her finally and smiled sheepishly, "Anytime."

She smiled back and walked up to him again, kissing him softly on the lips. "See you after work?"

"After work," he repeated as he opened the door and walked out. Lorelai just stood watching him with a dopey grin on her face until Sookie came running back in and shut the office door.

"Okay, I want all the details! I didn't know you and Luke were that 'together' yet! Spill sister!"

Lorelai laughed, and plopped herself down into the nearest chair, she was definitely not going to get any more work done that afternoon.


	4. This Just Screams Trouble

**A/N: **So I know I have severely neglected this story, and upon rereading the parts I had written, I decided to continue on until I finish it. Thanks for sticking with it, if you have…Reviews are always loved:)

And a big thanks to Maddy for making me want to finish this!

**Chapter 4: This Just _Screams_ Trouble**

"Ohhh God…" Lorelai sighed as she flopped back onto her pillow, covered in a thin sheen of sweat. "Where the hell did you learn how to do that?"

"Well…" Luke started as he rolled off of her onto his back.

"Wait! Scratch that, I don't want to know. Unless you like practiced on a dream version of me, and then that would be okay. Well maybe it would be a little creepy, but okay creepy. Like better than learning with an old girlfriend or something like that you know?"

Luke just stared at her, a satisfied grin on his face. He was just about to speak when an odd look flashed across his features.

"Is everything okay?" she asked quickly.

He pointed behind her head, "The window."

She flipped over quickly, noticing for the first time that her bedroom window was wide open, and she had no idea how long it'd been like that. Her mouth formed a little "oh" and she covered her eyes, blushing slightly. "Well we weren't really that loud right? I don't think we could have carried all the way to Babette's house…"

"Lorelai, are you serious? You are SO loud, especially this morning!"

She swatted him on the arm lightly, "I am not!"

"You screamed my name so loud just before that my ear is _still_ ringing."

"Well you weren't complaining about it five minutes ago mister."

"And I'm not complaining about it now, I'm just saying that it is entirely possible that Babette heard our little..uh…"

"Love romp?" Lorelai filled in the blank.

Luke chuckled, "You could call it that."

"Well what would you call it?" Luke leaned in, whispering something much dirtier in her ear. "Well that works too!" she smiled and leaned in for a kiss. Luke slipped his hand around her back, sliding her closer to him on the mattress as he slipped his tongue into her mouth. Just as he was about to pull her on top of him they heard a loud banging noise coming from somewhere downstairs.

"What the hell is that?" he asked angrily, pissed that they were interrupted.

"You don't think it's…Babette do you?"

Luke released his hold on her and hopped out of the bed, making his way to the window. He stood on his tip toes trying to see the front door, and he was still completely naked. Lorelai just sat with a satisfied smirk on her face admiring the view. He turned around quickly and caught her checking out his ass. "Like what you see?" he said smugly, loving the look she was giving him.

"Can't complain…" she said before he stooped down and captured her lips in his, tipping her head back a little with his hand. They were interrupted again by the loud banging. Lorelai sighed, "I better go see who that is, if I don't answer and it _is_ Babette she'll probably break in thinking I've been murdered or something." Luke stepped out of her way as she grabbed her robe from a nearby hanger, tying it tightly. "Be right back," she said grabbing his ass real quick as she skipped out her bedroom door, not having to look behind her to know the look Luke had on his face.

As she made her way down the stairs she couldn't help but smile at the fortunate turn her and Luke's relationship had taken since the night of Babette's party. She had absolutely no clue how she had lived without him all those years because now she just couldn't get enough. Her daydreamy thoughts were put on hold while she yanked her front door open, putting on a fake smile as she saw that it really was Babette outside her door.

"Hey honey! I was just coming over to check on you because, well me and Morey heard some screaming and we know you live here all alone since Rory went off to Yale and we don't want you getting hurt or anything over here!"

"Oh no Babette, I'm fine! I just, uh…saw a spider. They freak me out a little ya know, with all their eight hairy legs. Ick, I just hate them." Lorelai nodded her head, trying to look truthful and innocent.

"A spider huh?" Babette's voice dropped down to a whisper, "Did you happen to name that spider after Luke?"

Lorelai was at a loss for words, her witty comebacks completely fled from her brain as she stood in her front hall, clutching her robe as close to her body as she could get it, trying to pretend that she wasn't having this conversation with Babette.

"If I said yes would you believe me?" Lorelai choked out weakly.

Babette winked at her, "Nah, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Luke's not wearing you out is he?"

"Babette!"

"Okay, okay. I get it. You just might want to close your window next time because I can't be held responsible for anyone coming out to see if the story about you and Luke is true."

"The story?" Lorelai said incredulously.

"Yeah, about how he makes you scream _so_ loud."

Babette had said it so nonchalantly that it almost made Lorelai laugh, almost. "Why would people think that Babette?" she asked, shuffling her feet and looking at the floor.

"Well, you know how things are in this town. Nothin's a secret for long!" Babette was pointing her fingers all up in Lorelai's face, and in the direction of her bedroom.

"Okay, well thanks for stopping by," Lorelai said through gritted teeth. This was SO not supposed to be happening. She and Luke had agreed to keep the public displays to a minimum so that they wouldn't constantly be the talk of the town. Looks like once again things didn't go as she planned them.

"Aww don't be mad honey!"

"I'm not, bye Babette." Lorelai swung the door closed and sighed to herself. Now she had to tell Luke the delightful news, they were the new talk of the town. Yippee.

"Was that Babette I heard down there?" he asked her as she walked back into the bedroom heading straight for the open window. She grabbed it fiercely and slammed it shut, turning the lock tightly.

"Oh yeah it was." Lorelai told him what Babette had said; he took it better than she thought.

"Well, there's really nothing we can do about it now I guess."

"Well…I think we should put an alarm or something on this damn window." She hit the glass pane with her hand for emphasis.

"What kind of an alarm?" Luke asked, standing up and walking toward her.

"I don't know…a…loud sex alarm?" she finished lamely. Luke just raised his eyebrows. "Okay well what do _you_ think we should do then?"

"Just look and make sure the window isn't wide open next time."

"If it was that easy don't you think we would have thought to do that before this whole thing got started?"

"Well now we know, so we'll remember." Luke made his way around the room, picking up his discarded clothes from all corners of the room. "The town always has something to say anyway, just don't make it a big deal and they'll forget about it."

Lorelai shook her head, utterly surprised at how good Luke was taking this. He was always such a personal guy, and now his love life was going to be the talk of the town and he wasn't batting an eyelash. "Luke, why are you not caring about this?"

He looked away from her again, concentrating way too much on finding his shirt. "Lorelai, it's not a big deal, really."

Then it clicked. It's not a big deal for him because he's been waiting for this, waiting for her, and now the whole town knows that he can "please" her so well that she screams. This was completely a male ego boost. Lorelai smiled for a second, and then tried to decide what to do. She wasn't angry, after all, the town gossip mill was something that she'd gotten used to…and Luke's pride at being with her was actually kind of cute. She decided to let it go, for now. "Okay, yeah I guess you're right. It'll die down eventually."

He looked up at her finally, a look of slight relief on his face that she was dropping it. "Okay I've got to run to the diner, Cesar has to leave at 10 and I still need to shower and stuff."

"Okay," Lorelai leaned in and pecked him on the lips. "But be careful on your way, the women of Stars Hollow are probably waiting at strategic spots around town to try and see for themselves exactly why you make me scream." Luke's face turned red as Lorelai giggled softly.

"See you in a little bit?" he asked, completely ignoring her comment.

"As always." He left through her bedroom door and she flopped back down on the bed hoping that the town didn't go too crazy with the whole screaming business.

* * *

Later that morning

Lorelai walked into the diner quickly, trying to just get out of the street. No less than five people had approached her on her short walk to the diner. Some of them had come right out and asked if the rumors were true, others just used the word 'scream' much more than necessary. She plopped herself down at the counter, laying her head in her folded hands. A second later she felt Luke's fingertips brush against her forearm so she peeked an eye above her arms.

"You okay?"

"I'm hiding."

"Well you're doing a great job of it sitting in the middle of the diner at the beginning of the lunch rush."

"Well I'm hiding my eyes. If I can't see anyone than no one can give me that look."

"You've been getting a look?"

"Oh come on like you haven't?"

"Well I've been getting some really good tips…"

Lorelai slapped his hand lightly, "Oh hush you."

He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "How about some coffee? That'll make you feel better."

She lifted her head slightly and pouted, "Put a little nutmeg in it for me?"

"Absolutely."

Lorelai's head popped back up and she sat up eagerly waiting for a tall cup of steamy goodness. "Oh actually can you make that to go? I have to run to the Inn for a little bit to talk some things over with Sookie."

Luke poured the dark liquid into a to-go cup and slid it to her slowly. "Are you going to be home in time for the town meeting tonight?"

"Yeah I should be. Want to meet me there?"

"Sure."

Lorelai leaned over the counter for a quick kiss, then backed her way out the door, sighing to herself as she noticed several people in the diner sniggering at their affection. "Oh jeeze," she said under her breath. "Bye Luke."

He waved, and she was off to the Inn.

* * *

Town Meeting

6:00pm

Lorelai slipped in the back door just as Taylor was starting the meeting. She got a dirty look (what was new?) as she plopped down in the chair that Luke had saved her. He smiled at her and nodded his head, then they both turned their attention back to Taylor. He cleared his throat, "Fellow townsmen," Lorelai opened her mouth to speak and Taylor rolled his eyes and cut her off. "And fellow towns_women_." Lorelai nodded in satisfaction, then sit back to let Taylor speak. "A very serious issue has been recently brought to my attention. The town of Stars Hollow is severely lacking two very important restrictions that I feel must be dealt with immediately. The very moral fiber of our young citizens hangs in the balance…"

"Oh for Christ sakes Taylor just get on with it," Gypsy yelled from somewhere in the front of the room."

"I was getting to my point Gypsy! So, I am proposing that two new ordinances be enforced: one that regulates lewd behavior," Taylor paused for emphasis, shooting Lorelai a harsh glare, "and the other that regulates extremely loud noises…"


	5. Town Troubles

**Chapter 5: Town Troubles**

_So, I am proposing that two new ordinances be enforced: one that regulates lewd behavior," Taylor paused for emphasis, shooting Lorelai a harsh glare, "and the other that regulates extremely loud noises…"_

Lorelai and Luke both shot straight up in their chairs, both yelling "what?" at the exact same time.

"Taylor…" Luke continued, extreme annoyance dripping from his voice.

"Luke, will you please be seated. This new rule applies to all Stars Hollow citizens, stop making yourself the center of this issue."

"_I'm _making myself the center of this issue? _I _am!"

"Luke, please. The only one you are hurting is yourself here." Taylor gave him a pointed look, much like one you would give a five year old who was misbehaving in class.

Luke was fuming, his face three shades of red as he frantically looked around for somewhere to vent his frustrations. Coming up with nothing, he shot Taylor a glare and stormed out the back door. "Luke…" Lorelai yelled toward the direction of his retreating back. He didn't answer, so she turned her attention back to Taylor. "What are you doing Taylor?"

"I'm just trying to make life in Stars Hollow better for all its citizens, is that so wrong?"

"What's wrong is that this kind of thing doesn't need to be brought up at a town meeting! No one is complaining about 'lewd behavior' or 'loud noises' but you!"

"Lorelai—" she cut him off before he could finish.

"_Taylor_," she mocked his tone. "Give me the name of one person, and Kirk doesn't count, who complained to you about either of those things happening."

"Well," Taylor hesitated.

"See, I knew it. Quit messing around in everyone's lives Taylor! It's not like Luke and I need extra problems." Lorelai stood then, and walked out the same way Luke had. Taking a deep breath of the night air to calm herself, she set out to find where he had gone. Luke had always been a predictable guy. Opening the diner at the same time everyday, closing it everyday, paying his bills on time…she could set a clock by his routines, but when he was pissed, all that changed. He did rash things like spending a hundred thousand dollars to buy the building next to the diner, or kicking a car and getting arrested, so she really had no clue where he might have gone or what he was going to do after Taylor's little speech at the meeting. _Thank God this town is small_ she thought to herself, deciding to make a quick sweep to see if she could find him walking anywhere.

20 minutes later

Lorelai had been searching the town inch for inch but had come up with nothing, no Luke in sight. Deciding that random searching was doing her no good, she turned and headed in the direction of her house. Once there she could call him to find out where he was (her cell phone had died earlier in the day), and they could just talk everything out. She just hoped he hadn't already gone and done something he would later regret. As she walked up her driveway, a shadowy figure became apparent on her front steps. She'd recognize that man anywhere—it was Luke.

She made her way to him quietly, the only sound coming from the crunching of grass under her feet. "Hey," she whispered softly as she sat down next to him on the middle step. He was staring at his shoes, playing with a short stick. "You alright?"

Lorelai waited patiently for him to speak, but he waited so long that she almost thought he wasn't going to answer. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Lorelai wasn't buying it. "Are you sure? Because you seem kind of upset…" He didn't speak. "Luke come on, talk to me."

He sighed and threw the stick into the darkness. "Taylor just gets to me, you know that."

"Yeah I know that, everyone knows that."

"I just hate how he thinks that everything that goes on in this town is his business! I mean I know that the whole loudness thing was getting around town anyway, but it wasn't that big of a deal, it would have died down in a few days."

"Or months…" Lorelai said under her breath, giving him a small smile.

"But it would have died down. There was no reason for him to bring it up like that and embarrass you and us like in front of everyone."

"I completely agree, but we both know how Taylor gets. I'm sure his little speech didn't get him anywhere with the rest of the town either. No one wants a noise ordinance or anything; I don't think we have anything to worry about." Lorelai wrapped her arm around his shoulders, giving him a gentle squeeze. Something was still bothering Luke though, she was sure of it.

They both sat in silence for a few minutes, just staring off in the distance. Luke was thinking, she could tell by the look on his face. His brow was wrinkled, his eyes still and staring, his hands wrung together in his lap. "Lorelai, can I ask you a question?" he spoke quietly without looking at her.

"Of course, anything."

"Why did you run away from me that night at Babette's party?" He still wasn't looking at her.

Lorelai was slightly taken aback at his question, but what else could she do but answer? "Well, I think it had a little bit to do with being completely drunk, but also because I was…scared."

"Scared because everyone in the town was watching us?"

She wasn't quite following why he was thinking of this now. "Well I guess that was part of it, but really it was because it was you and me. Luke and Lorelai, best friends for years and we were kind of crossing that line we had going."

Luke nodded to himself but was silent for a moment.

"Luke, why are you asking me this?"

He finally turned his eyes to hers and she saw for the first time how anxious he looked. "Tonight at the meeting just made me wonder a few things, like if the town knowing we're together bothers you."

Lorelai was shocked, "Why would you even think that Luke? I don't care what the town thinks, and I love the fact that you and I are together now! Seriously I want to just run around telling the whole town that I snapped you up before anyone else had the chance."

"Well it was just that when you heard that everyone was talking about you being loud and, you know, stuff like that about us you got really annoyed."

"I was just annoyed that nothing in this town is too private for the rumor mill, that's all. I don't ever appreciate having my love life talked about by people I don't want to talk about it with, and I really didn't think that you'd like it any better because you've always been such a private person. That was the reason I was annoyed by it."

Luke nodded again, looking off into the distance with a pensive expression. He was satisfied with her answer; it seemed a good enough explanation. He had just needed a little bit of confirmation that she was really as in this relationship as he was. They had been having so much fun since the whole getting together thing had happened that it seemed too good to be true, and from Luke's past experiences, things that seemed to good to be true usually were. He had watched Lorelai date tons of guys over the years he had known her. Some lasted months, some lasted weeks, and a couple didn't even last through the first date, but she never seemed to stay with one guy for long. He didn't want to be one of those guys. The ones that couldn't catch her, couldn't keep her interested long enough to make anything work between them. She meant too damn much to him for him to ever let her go if this thing they had going on was just for fun. Of course he couldn't say any of this out loud, couldn't ever just come clean with her. He'd perfected the art of hiding his feelings for so long that it was like betraying himself to open up that much. For now he'd have to settle for knowing that she was with him at that moment, and that if he had anything to do with it, she would be with him for a long while to come.

As Luke sat pondering his feelings, Lorelai's eyes were glued to his face. He usually wasn't the easiest person to read, but right then, sitting outside with her, he was like an open book. She could see the worry, the inner struggle, everything that was going on in his head and she really just wanted to hug him and tell him that everything was going to work out in the end. She really wasn't sure that she was at all ready to even admit that to herself, but just seeing him look so forlorn was making her feel worse than she ever thought possible. "Luke," she said quickly. "Look at me."

He was slightly surprised to hear her voice when she spoke, almost forgetting that she had been sitting beside him that whole time. "Yeah?" he said softly.

"You know that this isn't just a fling for me, right?" His eyes widened in surprise, and she leaned in for a soft kiss. Pulling back, she noted the relieved look he was now sporting, almost a complete turnaround from only seconds before. "Hey, I'm thirsty," she said, changing the subject quickly. "Want to go inside and have some tea or something?"

"Yeah sure, I'm thirsty too." They stood up together, and Lorelai threaded her fingers through his, leading him inside. He didn't think she could see the genuine smile he wore as he followed her through the door, but she caught his reflection in the hall mirror. Lorelai gripped his hand tighter, a smile creasing her own face as she realized for the first time that Luke meant so much more to her than she had ever thought, and she suddenly didn't want to ever let go of his hand.


End file.
